Insulation

Grain Bins as Affordable Housing

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Mark Clipsham has come up with some new plans for affordable grain bin houses. According to Mark, the basic construction of these homes is fast and DIY friendly. There is no concrete foundation wall – the home’s wall construction is the same from the footing to the roof. They are monolithic/continuous, field-formed, self-supporting SIPs (no … Read more

Savannah Studio made with Shipping Containers

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Architect, artist, designer Julio Garcia had been designing plans for shipping container homes for a decade before he found the perfect place to build one: on a long, narrow stretch of his property in Savannah, Georgia. “I’m a big believer we should be adapting to the environment… I remember walking out and looking at the … Read more

Lightweight Concrete Sculptural Building

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Below is an excerpt from Home Work: Hand Built Shelter (Shelter Publications, 2004) by Lloyd Kahn. This book features more than 1,500 photos that illustrate various innovative architectural styles and natural building materials such as cob, papercrete, bamboo, adobe, strawbale, timber framing and earthbags. If you love fine, fun or funky buildings, you will enjoy … Read more

Ricecrete

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Michael G. Smith has been the expert on cob and light straw/clay use at greenhomebuilding.com for nearly two decades, and has answered innumerable questions on these topics, most of which are posted on the website.  In response to a question about using light straw/clay for a particular application, he wrote: Another possible solution, that I … Read more

Lovely Off-Grid House Boat

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This stunning 700-square-foot, self-built float home is fully off-grid with solar power, a pellet stove, a composting toilet, and an evaporation grey water system that ensures nothing is dumped overboard! It has an open concept kitchen, living and dining space, a master bedroom and bathroom on the main floor, two bedrooms on the second floor, … Read more